Random Apostasies and Heresies

I’ve been gathering news items while waiting for a chance to sit down and share them with my readers.  Fasten your seat-belts - these things give a rough ride!

The charismatic movement thrives in Africa, and I could never understand why.  One of the sites I follow had a link to an article from July explaining the attractiveness of charismatic teaching in Africa, and I found it very interesting.

Charismaniac Cindy Jacobs grates on me - really, really grates on me.  I have a really difficult time listening to such heretics, knowing how rich they get off of their gullible followers.  Well, this article was brought to my attention, where Jacobs claims to have caused a cheek bone to regrow in seconds.  She claims all sorts of power to heal, as well as claiming to know that Satan put a tumor in her!  Too bad she has no factual evidence to back up her claims; I always wonder why her sort don’t spend time in hospitals healing people!

The “Women of Faith” conferences seem to continue to add bad teachers to their line-ups.  I can’t recommend that women - or anyone for that matter - attend these things.  Especially when, like this one, they have a guest speaker like Rick Warren.  Partnering with Roma Downey really leaves them with little credibility. 

Not too many people know this about Mormons, but newlyweds are “punished” by the LDS by not being allowed to have family attend temple weddings.  On top of that, if they have a civil wedding to allow family members to attend, then they are banished from their temple wedding for a year.  Since the LDS consider such weddings to be an important step in their salvation progression, denying the temple wedding for a year could seriously affect their eternal position if they die before they have the wedding!  Of course in the real Christian faith, that is all nonsense anyway.  Just another example of legalisms in cults.

Hey, surprise, surprise!  Oprah had her mind “opened” by Rob Bell’s teachings!  She goes from one heretical idea to another, all the while propagating her New Age damnation to hundreds of thousands of viewers.  I think she is one of the most dangerous women in the world, because her teachings send people to hell.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses are another group who can’t seem to keep their teachings straight.  One of their essential doctrines concerns who the “faithful and discreet slave” is, and yet they keep changing their ideas as to their identity.  CARM has a good article about this subject, which you might want to use as ammunition for the next time JWs knock at your door!

A Methodist “pastor” claims there was no political statement meant in his church’s sign, which said, “Jesus had two dads and he turned out just fine.”  Yeah, right!  Mark Tooley examines the message of the sign.

Another good article from Hip and Thigh examining claims of the KJV Only crowd, this time about the KJV translators.

Random Apostasies and Heresies

I’m getting behind in my blog work, and here it is already time to post a “Random”  update!

I have reported on Joel Osteen’s false teachings several times in the past, but I found a good short article this past week which I think has some good information about this heretic.

Well, there’s more going on about Sarah Young’s book, “Jesus Calling.”  It seems that a pastor wrote a book critiquing it, and he was railed against in the reviews.  The followers of Young others like her, such as Beth Moore, behave so much like cult members that it is astonishing!  All discernment is thrown out the window as they follow these false teachers with every fibre of their being.  I find it to be very sad.

I’ve seen the Women of Faith conference advertised at my church in the past, and never saw anything in the advertisements which raised my warning flags.  But, now it looks like they are going the way of all other “tickling the ears” conferences.  The books sold through the Women of Faith online bookstore should be a good litmus test of what they are sanctioning and promoting at their conferences.  I guess it has been a while since I’ve seen the conference advertised, because they’ve been promoting this junk for quite some time now, including selling Brian McLaren’s heretical books.  Now they are getting involved with New Ager Roma Downey!  This article at Lighthouse Trails gives more information.

An interesting article was one I read from Tim Challies, about the obsession Christians have with virginity.  Of course we all believe that sexual relations should only take place within in the confines of marriage, but we also know that in today’s sex-saturated society that there are those who are seduced into having sexual relations while in junior and senior high school, let alone while in college.  What often happens is that these young people realize they have done wrong, repent of it and want to move on, but many Christians teach that they are now “damaged goods.”  This is especially true of the girls.  I think Challies makes some very important points.

I haven’t previously addressed a religious system which is prevalent in the area in which   I live - the Amish.  The Amish are indeed a very legalistic group of people, and I have read may testimonies by those who have left that system.  Now, I don’t doubt that there are true believers among the Amish, just as there are among Roman Catholics, but the Amish’ stress on works places a very heavy burden on their followers.  And the idea that living as if they are still in the 18th century makes them more holy and less likely to become worldly is just untrue. 

A friend recently loaned us a DVD movie based on a book by Beverly Lewis, who, for whatever reason, is enamored with the Amish and writes novels about them, romanticizing their religious beliefs.  It was very sad to see that the movie actually approved of such legalistic living.

This is all to say that I found a very interesting article about the Amish, as well about Beverly Lewis’ romanticizing of them.  I consider the Amish to be cultic.

More about Charles Stanley’s In Touch magazine has been reported by Lighthouse Trails Research ministry.  The magazine is getting deeper and deeper into the mystical movement and away from sound biblical teaching.  Stanley has to be held personally responsible.

Recovering Grace had a good article about the origins of Bill Gothard’s Institute for Basic Life Principles and all the false and legalistic teachings found there.  Just with the highlights covered in the article, one has to wonder why Christians - especially home-schoolers - are still enamored with him.

Former Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu says that he would rather go to hell than to go to a “Homophobic Heaven.”  Of course we all know that the word “homophobic” means being against sanctioning homosexual behavior.  Him being from the Anglican community makes this not really as surprising as it seems, since the Anglican community long ago went pro-homosexual.  Tutu says he won’t worship “a god who is homophobic.” I guess Tutu will discover the truth too late.

Tim Keller is getting more and more apologists and theologians criticizing his teachings - which is good from my vantage point; I always like it when popular teachers are exposed for their false teachings.  This article reviews a new book which examines some of Keller’s teachings.

Another popular false teacher is Donald Miller, of “Blue Like Jazz” fame.  He gave some advice recently about seeking truth, and yet it was poor advice - as usual.  A good examination of this latest teaching was posted over at Juicy Ecumenism.

The Presbyterian Church (USA) really, really doesn’t seem to every want to be an orthodox denomination again.  Now they rejected the hymn “In Christ Alone” because it teaches a biblical truth about God’s wrath!  Sigh!

An interesting thought about how Joseph Smith was fooled by Satan - according to the LDS teachings!

Oh, the United Church of Christ keeps demonstrating why it isn’t a real Christian denomination.  I don’t know if there is anything in their teachings which line up with the Bible!  They have an advice column on their official web site, and received a request for advice about a non-married sexual relationship, in which the one partner is suggesting a three-some.  The advice columnist has no problem with polyamory, and even uses the Bible to say it is okay!  In the advice, there is no condemnation of what the partner wants to do, rather the problem is that the two are not in agreement!!!!!  Well, once you approve homosexual behavior, then why is polyamory wrong?

Another liberal denomination, the United Methodist Church, has a pro-homosexuality movement within which has never been, to my knowledge, condemned by the UMC.  Well, this movement has led to the Desert-Southwest Conference to declare all their facilities now have “open bathrooms” policies.  The idea is to help “transgendered” people.  ARGH!  More of the emperor’s new clothes.

Lastly, the Pope is still Catholic.  I last reported about his granting indulgences for following him on Twitter, and now he has granted indulgences for those who attended the World Youth Day in Brazil.  Along with this heresy, the pope did a lot of praying to “Mary” while in Lampedusa, Italy.  Having read the prayer, all I can do is shake my head at such foolishness.  In addition to reporting on this event, Elizabeth Prata examines the whole issue of praying to Mary, and just how unbiblical it is.